Dark Shadows Blu-rayReview

Dark Shadows tells the sordid tale of Barnabas Collins (Johnny Depp), who is transformed into a vampire and entombed by a jaded witch named Angelique (a scene-stealing Eva Green – who's the only reason to watch the film). Two centuries later he awakens to find his family dynasty in ruins. Together with the help of Elizabeth Collins Stoddard (Michelle Pfeiffer), her angst-addled kids Carolyn and David (Chloe Moretz and Gulliver McGrath), her shady brother Roger Collins (Jonny Lee Miller) and psychiatrist Dr. Julia Hoffman (Helena Bonham Carter, who seems more like she just stumbled onto the set), they attempt to reclaim the family's former glory.

There's one constant with Tim Burton films as of late. The more money he's given, the worse the project turns out. Dark Shadows was an annoyingly expensive gothic horror picture that, had it been made in the mid '80s, would have cost $30-40 million. But with glossy big-budget effects and Johnny Depp in tow, Dark Shadows became a needlessly expensive $150 million tent-pole title that needed to hit, or else.

But Dark Shadows wasn't meant for an audience of that size. After all, it was based on a beloved but admittedly only modestly popular cult soap series. While such material seems ripe for the picking for Tim Burton, the once outstanding director seems to have a bit of a problem with excess.

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With enough money to make three or four '80s Burton films, Dark Shadows is a messy concoction of lazy storytelling, bad plotting and weak characters, all told under an expansive budget that allows for impressive sets and costumes and enough elaborate effects and production design to keep the eyes in wonder. Alas, with a meandering pace, no real story driving things, a villain who audiences sympathize with more than the “hero,” and a bloated, overlong running time, Dark Shadows represents some of worst work Tim Burton has delivered since, well, his last film.

As a die-hard Burton lover, this is wholeheartedly saddening. The once great filmmaker just can't seem to harness a story anymore and craft it into something compelling or memorable. Instead, Burton seems to be exploring the limits of his imagination, forgetting that some of his best work came from smaller budgets and more stress. I find it hard to imagine a film like Beetlejuice, for example, would work with the Burton we have nowadays.

Dark Shadows isn't Burton's worst film, but it's certainly a big disappointment, especially considering the gothic material. The idea of the film is funny on paper, but the execution is anything but compelling. Still, the visuals are quite dazzling and it's fairly obvious where all the money went. If only some of that cash had gone to crafting a more focused, compelling narrative, and if only someone had told Burton to dial things back a little, this might have been Burton's return-to-form. Fingers crossed for Frankenweenie.

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Dark Shadows comes to Blu-ray courtesy of Warner Home Video. The film is presented in 1.85:1 widescreen, encoded in 1080p/AVC and mixed in 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. We'll be taking a look at the two-disc Blu-ray/DVD/UltraViolet combo pack for this review. There's also a single-disc Blu-ray/UV version as well.

With crisp, bold gothic imagery driving the narrative, it should come as no shock that Dark Shadows looks quite extraordinary on Blu-ray. The image is a bit intentionally soft at times, but it's also defined by perfect shadows, inky, rich blacks and plenty of moody texture and detail. The encode yields little-to-no flaws, either. No noise, banding or heavy compression was noted at all. While Dark Shadows does boast a soft, eerie palette that doesn't strike the eyes in the way other big-budget titles can, this is a stellar transfer that's well worth commending.

Audio is equally dazzling, from the film's minor action set pieces (the finale sounds incredible) to the film's quieter, character-driven moments. Rarely does this mix falter. No crackles, distortions or hiss were noted. Surrounds help paint a lively gothic atmosphere, and bass adds texture to the film's action cues and to Danny Elfman's score.

Extras are less impressive. Fans are treated to a relatively thin Maximum Movie Mode that doesn't actually play like a Maximum Movie Mode at all. Instead, it's just a picture-in-picture feature with some decent behind-the-scenes insight and about 40 minutes of Focus Points featurettes. While it's hardly terrible, it also fails to live up to the Maximum Movie Mode level of quality. Bonus features are topped off with a 6-minute deleted scenes reel.

The Verdict

Dark Shadows should have been a return-to-form for director Tim Burton, but with a bloated budget and way too much room to play, Burton delivers yet another wasted effort. The Blu-ray looks and sounds fantastic, but extras are a little disappointing. Rent this one before you buy.